Lester - Meaning of Lester

[ 2 syll.les-ter, le-st-er ] The baby boy name Lester is sometimes used as a girl name. It is pronounced as LEHST-er †. Lester is largely used in the English language and it is derived from Old English origins. It is derived from the elements 'Ligora' ; 'caester' meaning Roman fort. The first name is from the surname, which is itself of the English place name now known as Leicester. The old form of the place name was known as 'Ligora caester' in the 10th century; 'Ligora' was possibly a tribal name, but its origin is obscure. The first name was initially used in the mid 19th century.

Lester is unusual as a baby name for boys. Its usage peaked modestly in 1906 with 0.335% of baby boys being given the name Lester. It ranked at #52 then. The baby name has since markedly declined in popularity, and is now of irregular use. Among all boy names in its group, Lester was nonetheless the most popular in 2018. Lester has in the past century been mostly given to baby boys. In 1905, the name Lester was given to 52 times as many baby boys than girls.